(The 'lot' was really just a place on the side of the 'main' road where people tended to park. Had Carlos not been standing there waiting, we would have driven right by!)
We started up through this village, learning about its Templar roots. The streets (not meant for cars) were narrow and twisty and the homes were so interesting. Here's the templar castle that overlooks the village:
I've already told you the story of how we decided to split up at this point. Here's the tunnel of cacti that Will and I encountered about .25 mile into our hike:
The path was really beautiful, with stunning views. Will was really challenged on this hike, though, so I gave him my camera to keep his mind occupied. He took some really great shots, but I think this one is my favorite - I love the way he framed it. I think we have a budding photographer on our hands.
So, pushing fast forward through the path confusion and the attempts to get back with John and Carlos, we arrive to the point where we are supposed to be, the fossil house at the bottom of the gorge (drawing a blank on the proper terminology - I'll probably receive a phone call from my sister later letting me know what I was looking for!). Carlos was leaving for the day to attend to park business in Lisbon, so I quickly took a group shot. From left to right, there is Domingues, Carlos, Vanya, Chris, John and Will. If you look above Carlos' head, you will see the same castle on top of the cliff. Domingues is Carlos' right hand man, but he doesn't speak English. Vanya, who just graduated from university (with one semester of English), did her best to translate for us, but it was an interesting afternoon!
We spent the rest of the morning cleaning fossils. There were many interesting ones, and we saw quite a variety.
When Domingues went to lunch, he closed the house for a couple of hours, leaving us with some free time. The boys changed into their swimsuits and we made our way down to the natural pool. This place was just fantastic, and loved by the locals, as there was already a family there with a picnic and a few others coming down the paths. It has been made more accesible over the last several years by the addition of a foot bridge and rock paths and steps. To make it even more unique, there are two pieces of art floating in the pond, and 6 foot trilobyte and a 10 foot cephalopod. Both were put there to be representative of the fossils that they've found in the area. (The trilobyte was easy to climb upon, but the cephalopod wasn't and provided lots of good laughs as people tried to mount it - and then stay on while friends shook it!)
A closer look at the boys under the waterfall:
We went to the neighboring village for lunch, as it was highly recommended by Carlos. The house specialty was wild boar, so my adventurous husband ordered some up right away; I stuck with a tamer pork loin. Chris proclaimed that the wild boar tasted like McDonald's hamburgers (but it didn't sway me into trying it one bit!). The restaurant only had a few people there (we were a bit late for the lunch 'rush' I guess), but was lovely. Here's Chris with one of his favorite things (bread!); take a look at the tiles in the background. They were really gorgeous.
And here's Will with the boar:
After lunch, we returned to the park. We finished cleaning the remaining fossils and set out to find some of our own. It was VERY hot by this point, so we did this for about an hour. Will stayed in the shade at the fossil house, and we set off for the cliffs. John and Chris were the spotters, and I recorded the location on log sheets using a GPS device to record the exact location. They found three great sets of fossils in the rocks. Chris was just elated, as you can see here:
It was not an easy day, by any means, but it was meaningful and one that we will never forget! Thanks for reading.
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